Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1035

‘Hyung, you’ve been on edge lately, haven’t you?’

‘Really?’

‘Yeah. It’s like your movements have come alive, and you’re seeing angles incredibly well.’

Park Yu-min gave an awkward laugh.

In truth, even during his past gamer life, he had received countless compliments. Before switching game genres, Park Yu-min had achieved unprecedented feats.

Whether it was the media or industry insiders, they were always quick to praise him upon meeting him.

Yet, Park Yu-min never quite got used to compliments. It was something close to his nature.

‘It was just luck, I guess.’

‘Come on, can you do that with just luck? Then am I just unlucky for being like this?’

Choi Jeong-woo joked, and Park Yu-min didn’t know what to do.

‘…Hyung, don’t react so seriously. I was just kidding, I’m embarrassed.’

‘Oh, really?’

Choi Jeong-woo looked at Park Yu-min with a face that showed he couldn’t understand at all.

‘How did he become a pro gamer with that personality?’

Pro gamer.

No, there’s no need to limit it to pro gamers. Professionals are usually the embodiment of competitiveness.

Those with soft personalities could never become pro gamers. Even pro gamers who seem very kind and gentle on the outside are often stubborn on the inside.

But Park Yu-min was truly gentle.

‘It’s really amazing.’

Of course, it wasn’t entirely incomprehensible.

Park Yu-min had a strong competitive spirit, which didn’t match his gentle personality. What Choi Jeong-woo couldn’t understand was how this gentle personality and strong competitive spirit could coexist in one person.

‘It’s really hard to figure out.’

‘Huh?’

‘No, it’s nothing.’

Choi Jeong-woo waved his hand.

‘Well, who cares about personality, as long as he’s good at the game.’

By that standard, Park Yu-min was an excellent pro gamer. No, he was more than excellent; he was amazing.

When Park Yu-min first came to the practice room for a test, there were concerns about whether he could become a pro in this game, but now the situation was completely different.

Park Yu-min secured a starting position not long after entering the practice room, and in less than half a season, he had completely taken over the ace position of the team.

Thanks to that, his team was drawing huge crowds these days.

‘It’s a drama, a drama.’

If you were to name the most popular pro in Galaxy [a fictional game or league] in the past, everyone would mention Park Yu-min.

A gentle face, a shy personality, and perfect game management that didn’t match his personality.

It was impossible not to be popular.

But as the era of Galaxy faded, Park Yu-min seemed to disappear into history as well. But then, Park Yu-min had completely revived with a new game.

The number of fans who had come to know Park Yu-min as a gamer had increased.

But the ones who reacted more passionately and cheered were the old fans, who should now be called ‘uncles’.

The revival of a star who had disappeared brought back the ‘uncle’ fans, who had buried their passion in their hearts and were consoling themselves with old VODs [Video on Demand], back to the stadium. Thanks to that, while other teams’ cheers were filled with the high tones of somewhat delicate female fans, Park Yu-min’s cheers were filled with masculine shouts.

Of course, that didn’t mean he had few female fans, but relatively, the proportion of men was very high.

‘Hyung, have some of this. It’s a gift for you, but it feels wrong for us to eat it alone.’

‘It’s okay. You guys eat it.’

‘Hyung, the fans gave it to you to eat…’

‘Hmm, then just a little.’

At the mention of ‘fans,’ Park Yu-min quietly sat at the table. Choi Jeong-woo gently pushed the high-quality jerky in front of Park Yu-min.

‘The scale is a bit different.’

The fan culture of pro gaming teams is similar to that of idol fan culture. Gifts, known as ‘tributes’ or ‘drops,’ arrive from time to time. Usually, fans gather money in communities like fan cafes, collect opinions, and then send gifts.

But Park Yu-min’s case was a bit different.

Instead of community tributes, Park Yu-min received individual fan tributes. Park Yu-min’s fans, who were already older and had financial power, didn’t need to go through the cumbersome process of gathering money from each other.

If they wanted to give something, they would just buy it and send it.

Thanks to that, the gifts he received were a bit different from what typical players received.

Gifts that came as fan cafe tributes were usually small items like T-shirts, towels, or frames with the player printed on them, or food like Korean beef or cakes with the player’s character on them. On the other hand, what Park Yu-min received was something more masculine.

‘There’s no more room to stack the red ginseng.’

Perhaps because they thought stamina was important, he received health foods like red ginseng or black garlic as gifts. Of course, other players also received nutritional supplements like vitamins, but Park Yu-min’s supplements were overflowing with masculinity. One fan even sent snake wine.

Everything was wild and large-scale.

While other players received mice as gifts to encourage them to play hard, Park Yu-min received a brand-new computer, including the tower. He tried to return it, saying it was too much, but they never took it back.

Choi Jeong-woo chuckled.

‘Well, everyone must be happy.’

Park Yu-min was also troubled, but he knew that it all came from everyone’s affection for him.

Even Choi Jeong-woo was like that. Although they were in different positions, Choi Jeong-woo was more of a fan than a teammate of Park Yu-min. Watching a player who was once his idol regain his peak in a completely new game was an exhilarating experience.

If Choi Jeong-woo hadn’t been on the same team as Park Yu-min as a pro gamer, he would have been the first to cheer from the stands.

‘Yu-min hyung.’

Park Yu-min, who was eating jerky, turned his head at the voice calling him.

‘Yeah?’

‘The coach wants you in his office.’

‘Okay, I got it.’

Park Yu-min got up abruptly with jerky in his mouth.

‘Oh, Yu-min, sit down.’

Coach Oh Jin-hyung smiled and pointed to the seat in front of him.

‘Did you call for me?’

‘Yeah, I did.’

Oh Jin-hyung wore an extremely pleased smile.

‘He’s a lucky charm.’

Anyone who knew how hard Park Yu-min worked couldn’t help but like him. Moreover, if you were the coach of the team Park Yu-min was on, the degree of that affection would skyrocket.

‘I didn’t even expect this much.’

Running a team requires paying attention to many things more than it seems from the outside.

It was important to improve performance right away, but it was also important to make the team members strive for continuous improvement. The team wasn’t just for one season.

That was what Oh Jin-hyung wanted from Park Yu-min.

Oh Jin-hyung knew better than anyone how hard Park Yu-min practiced. Even when he was a gamer for Galaxy Craft in the past, Park Yu-min was famous for his incredible amount of practice.

While typical gamers would reduce their practice time after achieving results and becoming famous, Park Yu-min was a madman who would increase his practice time when he got results.

One of the main tasks of Park Yu-min’s team coach in the past was to stay in the practice room until dawn and drag Park Yu-min away from the computer to make him sleep, so what more could be said?

Talent is important to become an excellent player, but diligence is also an indispensable factor. If the oldest player, who was already a star in the past, practiced the hardest, the other kids would have no choice but to learn from that attitude.

Of course, Coach Oh Jin-hyung’s plan was successful.

Seeing Park Yu-min practicing day and night, the other players also began to increase their practice time. If there was someone right next to them whose skills improved as they practiced, how could they afford to relax?

Besides….

‘The atmosphere is good these days, right?’

‘Yes.’

‘It’s all thanks to you.’

‘Come on, it’s because the kids are working hard.’

‘Hey, I wouldn’t say this to anyone else but you. People tend to slack off when they’re told they’re doing well. But you’re not that kind of person, so I’m being honest. You’re doing a really great job. Yu-min, I’m living thanks to you these days.’

‘Thank you. I’ll work harder.’

Oh Jin-hyung smiled contentedly.

Since Park Yu-min joined, the team’s performance had skyrocketed. The team, which had been hovering around the relegation zone in the first half of the season, had been on a winning streak and had now advanced to the playoffs as if it were a given.

If they maintained this form, winning the championship was not a dream.

Thanks to Park Yu-min, the team was able to aim for its first championship.

‘It was the best signing.’

He had fulfilled the role he was expected to play and was perfectly performing roles he wasn’t even expected to. The team’s performance was improving, and the number of fans was increasing. As a coach, he couldn’t be happier.

‘I know it’s tough, but let’s do well in the remaining schedule. You’re good at managing yourself, so I’m not worried, but honestly, I’m worried because your practice is too much. You’re not as young as you used to be, when you could digest iron, right?’

‘…I’m still young, though?’

‘You are young, of course, you’re young. But as a pro gamer, you’re not on the younger side.’

Park Yu-min nodded. That was true. It was a world where the average age was very young.

‘Don’t overdo it with practice and ruin your condition, adjust it appropriately. Got it?’

‘Yes, coach. Don’t worry.’

Oh Jin-hyung nodded with a pleased face.

‘And the reason I called you is not because of that…’

‘Yes.’

‘The headquarters wants to shoot a commercial with you.’

‘…Yes?’

Park Yu-min’s eyes shook.

A commercial?

‘A commercial?’

‘Yes. A TV commercial, no less. Not for cable, but for terrestrial broadcasting.’

Park Yu-min’s hands trembled.

‘M-Me?’

‘Why are you so surprised? You’ve shot commercials before, haven’t you?’

He had.

He remembered it clearly.

The hellish commercial video that still appeared in galleries and other places whenever he was active. It was said that to become a fan of Park Yu-min, you had to be able to watch that commercial to the end and endure it, a once-in-a-lifetime dark history.

‘I have. I have shot one, I have…’

‘Calm down, Yu-min. It’s different from then. The director is a good person, and you’ll barely have any lines to say.’

‘Ah, no, but…’

‘This time, the headquarters is really pushing for it. It’ll turn out well. They’ve prepared the best co-star.’

‘That…’

After much deliberation, Park Yu-min nodded blankly.

‘I-I’ll shoot it.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘The coach told me to shoot it. But why are you asking like that?’

‘No, I…’

Oh Jin-hyung laughed awkwardly.

There was no way Oh Jin-hyung wouldn’t know about Park Yu-min’s dark history. Oh Jin-hyung, who cared for Park Yu-min more than anyone, couldn’t watch that video to the end. His hands and feet would curl up, and he would unknowingly slam the desk.

‘I was worried you’d be awkward with the commercial.’

‘Honestly, I really don’t want to shoot it…’ Park Yu-min sighed.

‘If I refuse this, the opportunity for the younger players to shoot commercials will be further away. I have to do it. Then the other kids will have a chance too.’

‘Ah…’

Oh Jin-hyung nodded.

Park Yu-min was that kind of guy.

‘Okay. Then we’ll go ahead with the shoot.’

‘Yes.’

‘I hope the visuals will be good this time…’

‘You said it.’

The two sighed simultaneously.